In this year of the centenary of the first law aimed at protecting cultural heritage in Quebec, the Quebec population has been dispossessed of a major component of its collective heritage. On Friday May 13, the former Domaine-de-l’Estérel shopping center, in Sainte-Marguerite-du-Lac-Masson, fell under the peak of demolition workers. The destruction of the protected part of the building, carried out without any authorization, is an unacceptable and irreversible gesture.
The Minister of Culture and Communications must react vigorously and implement all the means at her disposal to make this case an example. This new disaster is an opportunity to demonstrate its desire to stop the untimely demolition of Quebec’s built heritage, which led to the amendment of the Cultural Heritage Act.
The former Domaine-de-l’Estérel shopping center is one of the first manifestations of modern architecture in Quebec and was recognized for its exceptional heritage value. It was the last and ultimate witness to a collective vocation of the vast resort estate laid out by Baron Louis Empain and his architect, Antoine Courtens, in the Laurentians, on the shores of lakes Masson and Dupuis, at the end of the 1930s. At the top of the building, its famous restaurant-dance hall Blue room and the stairwell leading to it have been listed as a heritage building since 2013.
Although this status represents the highest level of heritage protection for a building in Quebec, nothing prevented the wreckers from completely removing this emblematic building. It is clear that this gesture occurred with disconcerting ease.
In the days leading up to this destruction, the owner had undertaken to demolish the unprotected section of the building, work for which he had obtained a permit from the ministry. The work started on Monday May 9 was a public fact and, from May 11, the newspaper The duty mentioned it in the “Free opinion” section. On Thursday, the back of the building was leveled and its classified head was still standing. On Friday, she was down.
This event, whose gravity is unparalleled, raises several questions. We understand that the ministry cannot post an inspector next to every listed property, but aren’t certain times particularly crucial? Wouldn’t the planned demolition of an integral part of a building of superior heritage value justify special attention on the part of the ministry? Shouldn’t increased monitoring of such construction sites become the norm in order to prevent a dismaying situation, like the one we are facing, from happening again?
Under the powers granted by the Cultural Heritage Act, the most severe penalties must be applied to the culprits. The destruction of a classified property represents the greatest attack on our national heritage and this gesture must not go unpunished. A simple fine will not suffice, nor the promise made by the owner of a reconstruction paving the way for the real estate development of the 2.5 hectares of land acquired at a good price given, precisely, the presence of the heritage building to be restored. Such a gesture requires thought and skill. It is time for Quebec to send a strong message in favor of its heritage.
The full list of co-signers:
Gavin Affleck (architect, Affleck de la Riva, architects), Taïka Baillargeon (assistant policy director, Héritage Montréal), Gérard Beaudet (urban planner emeritus, 2021 Ernest-Cormier Prize and full professor, School of Urban Planning and Landscape Architecture of the University of Montreal), Yves Bergeron (Professor, History of Art, UQAM, holder of the Chair in Museum Governance and Cultural Law), Anne-Marie Broudehoux (Director, Graduate Studies, School of design, UQAM), Marc-André Carignan (urban planning columnist, recipient of the 2021 Frederick-Todd Prize), Anne Carrier (president, Anne Carrier architecture), Pierre Corriveau (president, Ordre des architectes du Québec), Jean Damecour (architect , Jean Damecour Architecte), Claudine Déom (Professor, School of Architecture, University of Montreal), Etienne Desrosiers (filmmaker), Martin Drouin (Professor, Urban Studies, UQAM), Michèle Dubuc (President, Sainte- Mark rite-du-Lac-Masson et de l’Estérel), Bessam Fallah (member of Docomomo and lecturer, Laval University), Catherine Fernet (president, Association of landscape architects of Quebec), Sonia Gagné (architect, Provencher_Roy), Sylvain Gariépy (President, Ordre des urbanistes du Québec), Joseph Hillel (filmmaker), Pierre Lahoud (historian and photographer), Phyllis Lambert (architect, founding director emeritus, Canadian Center for Architecture), Stephan Langevin (architect, STGM Architecture) , Carole Lévesque (director, School of design, UQAM), Philippe Lupien (architect, professor, School of design, UQAM), Sophie Mankowski (founding director, Portrait Sonore), Catherine Martin (filmmaker), Josette Michaud and Pierre Beaupré ( architects, Beaupré Michaud et Associés, Architectes), François Moreau (architect, ABCP Architecture), Luc Noppen, (professor, Urban Studies, UQAM), Réal Paul (architect, Réal Paul Architecte), Louise Pelletier (director, Design Center, UQAM), J.-Louis Vallée (president, Fédération Histoire Québec), Vincent Van Dongen (grandson of Antoine Courtens), Ève Wertheimer and Jan Kubanek (architects, ERA Architectes)